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A van and three tractors were trapped in the water at Mauriceville following Hurricane Harvey. -
A makeshift distribution center was set up in Mauriceville to hand out donated supplies after Hurricane Harvey hit on Aug. 25. -
Rebekah Franklin (right) visited with hurricane victims at the supply distribution center in Mauriceville.
As they reached the outskirts of Snyder, Sid and Rebekah Franklin questioned what they were doing. They were driving toward the Texas coast without a vision and no plan. Just a word from God.
It began shortly after Hurricane Harvey devastated the coast and Sid Franklin heard the Lord say there was a need to be met. With that, he and his wife Rebekah Franklin loaded up and made their way to the disaster zone.
“Our plan was to drive until we hit water,” Sid Franklin said.
Despite rescue professionals advising civilians against heading for the Texas coast, the Franklins knew there was a need, and they intended to meet it.
As they traveled north of Houston, on their way to Deweyville, they came to an intersection.
“We were going straight from the intersection when we pulled over and talked to a truck driver who had just come from the place where we were headed,” Sid Franklin said. “The water was up to the headlights on that semi.”
Throughout the night, people arrived at the intersection, pulling over or turning around.
“We were stuck there on standby not really knowing what to do,” Sid Franklin said.
Little did they know, they were near a town of about 4,000 people who needed help and had little of it: Mauriceville.
“We didn’t realize that we were at Mauriceville, and we didn’t realize that there was a rescue operation,” Sid Franklin said. “You didn’t know what was down there or how deep the water was.”
A firetruck had pulled up to the intersection about to start a search and rescue when Sid and Rebekah Franklin got involved. Using their truck, the Franklins were able to bring rescued victims to dry land.
A short time later, a man from Dallas showed up driving a flatbed truck loaded with 19,000 bottles of donated water.
“People flocked to Mauriceville, asking for water,” Rebekah Franklin said. “We had to ration the water out. Everybody there was so friendly, but they were also desperate and needed help.”
Alongside the Franklins, the Mauriceville Fire Department and people from Illinois, South Carolina, Louisiana, Florida and many other places created a distribution center for supplies.
“People drove 20 hours with truckloads to Mauriceville,” Rebekah Franklin said. “God put people from all over the place together. There was an immediate need and nothing to give them besides what God provided.”
After a full day, the Franklins planned to head home. As they drove past the intersection on their way home, a barefoot man came wading through the water, needing shoes.
“We told him to hop in the truck and took him to get some shoes,” Sid Franklin said. “He picked up a pair of donated shoes that fit perfectly. At that point, we looked at each other and decided they needed more help.”
Sid and Rebekah Franklin spent a second day distributing supplies to the growing number of victims.
“During distribution, you had to explain to the people that the supplies were for the whole town, and they were good about saying ‘give some to the next family,’” Rebekah Franklin said. “These were donations from people all over the country. They weren’t supplied by the government. Until they got government help, it was all sustained by the Lord.”
That second day they had plenty of diapers and hygiene items, but no food. Late that morning, some boys from Florida answered their prayers and showed up with a load of food.
“We would give what we could give,” Rebekah Franklin said. “Over and over the people would say it’s better than nothing. It was a precious thing to be a part of.”
One of the people who needed help was a 76-year-old World War II veteran who said he and his wife had been stuck in their house. Once the water receded, he was able to drive his car to the distribution center and get help.
“He was real feeble looking, and he said that he and his wife had had nothing to eat but peanut butter crackers,” Rebekah Franklin said. “He had also just had back surgery and was in a lot of pain, so we made sure they were taken care of.”
Later that day it was announced that Mauriceville was going to be a Federal Emergency Management Agency designated drop-off point.
And as more help continued to flow in, so did the victims.
“We finally had the help we needed,” Rebekah Franklin said. “The stream of cars full of people needing help never ended from dawn to dusk. Even though the hurricane was devastating, it washed away race, it washed away status, it washed away wealth. We’re all human, but we’re not alone. We’ve got a big family.”
She said that despite victims losing everything, they still had something.
“It’s not about what we possess,” Rebekah Franklin said. “It’s about our path to Heaven and the people around us.”
Both Sid and Rebekah Franklin said their work in Mauriceville was life changing.
“It was one of the most amazing things to be a part of,” Rebekah Franklin said. “It was miraculous. What God did for those people in two short days was nothing short of a miracle.”